A Sweet Addiction
by MaApDpNlEeSsS
Summary: When shit happens (like it ALWAYS does) and Hikari ends up in a new, bizarre land where fish fly from the ground and neither the Park nor the Clocktower exist, how will she respond? And who is this new Role Holder with all these knifes and these sharp yellow eyes? And is that Nightmare? IN THE FLESH! WTF is happening! What's going on here!
1. An Ordinary Day

**ME: Time for some side stories! I've worked all break on these, and I hope that they are to your liking. This particular chapter is sort of a starter chapter, one where I can branch off of and make other side stories from. ****Of course, this SAYS it is part of the Gray x Hikari that I've been wanting to do for a while but...you get the idea. **

**I'm probably thinking of branching off to a Boris FF or something like that...**

**Hikari; Alright! let's go**

**ME: INDEED!**

**R&amp;R**

* * *

Chapter 1:

"Ok, people! That's it for today! It's getting to closing time!" Mr. Bill called out over the counter, catching mine and a couple of other employee/customer's attention. The customers moaned a bit, but began to slowly shuffle out of the place, some ordering more to take home while others throw away their trash and leave completely, out into the midday sun that bears down, making the outside the equivalent to a oven. A couple of last minuters rush in before we completely close up to buy a snack or two before leaving just as quickly.

"Whoa, what a long shift!" I exclaim with a sigh as I pop my neck, shoulders and shake out my aching wrists after about three or more straight hours of kneading tough, sticky dough. A mixture of groans and sighs resonates around me, as that take a lot out of anyone after a while.

"Yes, and you were especially helpful today, even though it was your day off.", Su said as she clasped her hand on my shoulder, making a small cloud of flour poof off of me, "Sorry about that, but with Avery and Riley out sick…"

"Hey, it's cool. You're not gunna hear any complaining from me.", I answer, shaking her off. Hey, I've never been one to argue with working, especially when I'm paid overtime. The joints between my fingers give a throb of discomfort, and I rub at my knuckles to soothe it with a pained laugh, "Ah…my hands are another story though."

"I know the feeling", Tom calls out from the kitchen as he peeks through the door, bits of dough up to his wrists and flour up to his elbows as he has yet to wash himself up yet, "But the Apple Bread you introduced has become a super hit with the customers! We had an overload of orders for just that one item!"

A whistle resounds around us, introducing the boss into our conversation, "I'll say! I thought we'd never get them filled!" he says as he walks over and ruffles my (for once) neatly combed hair, "Thanks again for coming in!"

I laugh and complain a little as I push his hand away, really wanting to change and get the flour out of my pores. I turn toward the hallway to the changing room when I remember something

"Ah! Mr. Bill-"

He lets out a hearty laugh, "Yes, yes, I know. I'll have it waiting for you when you get ready to leave."

With a fist pump of excitement/ accomplishment, I rush off to the back and do a flight-of-the-bumblebee clean up session that would put Peter and his germaphobic tendencies to shame, making sure I got the dough out from between my fingers and off my face and arms. With a chuck of my uniform in the dirty clothes hamper, as they wash your uniform for you, I kick my locker open, smiling when I see the little rubber band of bills. (Yay, OVERTIME PAY!) I put that in my wallet and reach back into the locker to pull out my normal clothes: One light blue, close collared shirt with butterflies on it, (so to not scare people with my scar. Don't wanna repeat of the incident with Alice) a pair of above the knee cut-off jeans (NOT booty jeans, people! It's just about a half inch-inch above my knee), my usual yellow-orange-red scarf double wrapped around my waist and finally, my usual ragged tennis shoes with no socks. (I simply gave no fucks this morning) I brush out the braid the girls put in my hair earlier after I completely change, throwing it into its usual low ponytail afterwards, it being slightly wavy from the weave. And with a wipe of my blue-rimmed glasses to get the caked on flour off of them, I head back up to the front of the store, practically skipping with joy…

…as I bump into Gowland of all people.

"OUPH!"

"AH!" he exclaims, grabbing hold of my shoulders before I can bust my bum, "Watch it, sweet pea! Almost knocked ya' clean over!"

"Ow…I'll say." I moan as I stable myself enough so he can let go. Then, it occurs to me "Wait a minute…What are you doing here, anyway. Shop's closed already"

He chuckles, "Well, other than the fact that this store in general belongs to me, I asked ol' Bill to save me some of them Apple Breads I've been hearin' 'bout. I thought it was about time for a good, ol' fashioned break and thought I'd come pick'em up"

"…Huh." Is all I can respond as I take that little bit of information in. I guess it does make sense though…the Bakery _IS_ on his territory. So he's, like…my Boss's boss or something?

"Ah! You're still here, good." speaking of bosses, here comes mine now, each arm holding a full brown paper bag. He carefully lays them both on the counter, and I smile when one thumps heavier than the other, "Whew~ I think that's everything."

"Damn!" Gowland whistles, "The hell's in _THAT_ bag, Bill? The whole store?"

"The leftovers", he responds with a chuckle, "She takes them all home with her. Good thing too! I'd rather give it away than watch a perfectly good cake spoil."

"I agree!" I laugh, and Gowland follows

"You're just happy you gots sweets"

"No argument here"

We all laugh at that little bit, and start chatting for a little bit about this, that, and another, before Mr. Bill has to firmly kick us out, as he has to lock the place up. With a wave, we walk out into the midday sun, it beating down on the both of us as we weave through what little people were still ambling to the exit of the park. There is a relatively comfortable silence between us for a while, until Gowland stomach growling decides to break it. He gives an embarrassed grin as he scratches the back of his head, ruffling his rusty red-brown hair.

"Why don't you go ahead and try some bread. I'd love to hear your opinion." I say kindly, and he chuckles

"Best idea I've heard all day, darlin'! I'm starved!" he responds as he starts digging through his bag. He pulls out a loaf, and I can't help but watch intently as he takes a decent chomp out of it, humming in delight.

"Whoo~wee! Sum goo eets!" he exclaims with a mouth-full of bread, and I openly laugh at him. He swallow before continuing, "It's simple, yet filling. Flaky crust with a sweet-sour crunch of the tiny apple bits." Another bite, and I have to decipher his full mouth language, "'Ow'd ew um uph wif dis an'waie?"

I cover my grin, recalling the accident on how that particular sweet came into being

"It was actually supposed to be Apple _CAKE _(*1)", I explain, "But Boris somehow snuck into the kitchen and spilled yeast in my dough when I wasn't looking", and I _SO_ don't even want to go into explaining how much of a cleanup it was. GAWD, I thought I would never stop swelling, and when it did, we had enough dough to fill up every pan in the store, and then some!

"If this was a mess up, it's a damn good one. Maybe I'll share with that mangy cat whenever he shows up.", Gowland says, finishing off his loaf and digging around for a second. Well, Boris better hurry up, or else there won't be any more to share when Gowland gets done!

A thought occurs to me, and a balance my bag on my hip, reaching into my back pocket and pulling out my wallet. I flip it open, flipping the picture of my brothers back and pulling out a folded piece of paper.

"When you see him, give this to him while you're at it", I say, holding out the paper to him, which he takes and opens out of curiosity, "It's the fish recipe he was asking for. "

"You mean the fish-burger thing? (*2)"

"It's actually called a croquet", I correct. Geez…

"Dumb cat and his fish" He snorts with a shake of his head, "Me? Now…I liked that meat pie you made that one time. Mmmm…Smelled so damn good, I could smell it at the other end of the park!"

"And so could everyone else. I swear I had half the park employees in my window that day, even if I do live out of the way a little." I say with a wide smile, happy to hear his praise. Seeing or hearing about people who enjoy the food I make makes me so happy, like a little accomplishment. It's like the effect of getting a gold star in kindergarten or something! So happy! , "If you want, I'll write down the recipe and give it to you."

"Ah…That would be swell!" Gowland says as he reached over and ruffles my hair with his big hand affectionately, "You're such a good girl, Hikari. You'll be a great mother someday"

I can't help scoffing at his statement. I don't have time for love, let alone getting married and having kids. I already have five growing boys (my younger brothers) back in my world who probably need me right now, so I gotta finish my…uh…Game or whatever…pronto!

But…

A wicked grin reaches my lips as I remember a similar conversation like the one Gowland and I are having, but instead it was Kida I was conversing with…and man she got so embarrassed and pissed that I got chased out of the Clocktower, with a blush so hard on her that her cinnamon colored skin turned burgundy

I turn toward Gowland, "Dunno about being a mom, but as soon as Kida and Julius stop being so damn awkward, admit that they actually like each other, and eventually get around to having some tots of their own, I've already called dibs on Babysitter."

He grins with me, scratching his stubble as a metaphorical flower blooms on his noggin, "Daddy Julius...kinda catchy."

"And Momma Kida…has a sorta ring, don't you think?"

"Hehe…yeah"

We pause in our steps for a minute, grinning as we slowly turn toward each other before bawling out in an uncontrolled fit of laughter. As we cackled, we were being particularly careful to not spill our precious cargo all over the sidewalk, cause man, what a waste that would be!

After about a minute or so of good, belly laughter, we start forward again, Gowland wiping a tear from his eyes, "Ahaha...Whee, that was a good laugh! Love the man as a brother, but he's about as comfortable with women as a cat is with rain."

I whistle. I kind of knew Kida was bad, (not like I'm any different) but hearing that Julius was THAT bad made me feel kind of sorry for him. I mean, he's actually not that bad of a guy, when you get to know him. Stubborn and a workaholic, yeah, but he's never come off as a bad guy. And he must be awful lonely in that Tower. And Kida? Well, she's just a cutie all by herself. A stubborn, painfully honest, hardworking, ass-kicking, perfectionist, sure, but she's still a cutie with a heart of gold and a great smile! (When she actually does smile. She usually has this neutral expression all the time.) I think they're made for each other, ever since I saw that pic that Kida drew of him in her sketch pad…so KAWAII!

_Either that or Blood…I can picture Kida with Blood…or maybe Boris…Hmmm…I'm getting off track a little_

I sigh airily, "Kida and Julius are so damn _cute_ together, but they have this thing going on that make it both impossible to look away and hard to watch."

"Gotta agree with you there, sweetheart." Gowland sighs, "Those two though…I kinda hope something happens. That'd be nice"

"Sure would." I lament/laugh, then blink as I notice a familiar fork in the road, "I'm actually thinking about going to go visit them, maybe in the next couple of time periods, to drop off some of these sweets. I can't possible eat them all myself. If I do, you care to join me?"

"That sure does sound nice", Gowland mumbles disheartedly, "But I got more paperwork to do. I swear every time that bastard Blood comes and 'visits' it gives me more shit to do!"

Ah, that's right. Elliot did visit me at work today, didn't he? He usually only comes for one of three reasons

A: Blood is negotiating (messing) with Gowland again

B: The twins are ditching work…AGAIN

C: To have some carrot cake

My guess is that it had to be a mix of option A and C, because that would explain his sudden exit. I was a little curious as to why he left in such a hurry with a half a piece of cake hanging out in his mouth…I guess that also explains the gunshots I heard in the distance too.

I feel for the man, and pat Gowland sympathetically on the shoulder, "Don't worry. You've dealt with it before. This time will be no different."

"You're right, darlin", he says with a shrug of his shoulders, "Well, I guess I'll be gettin' back to work now. I'll see ya"

"Yeah, see ya.", I wave as I turn down the opposite road that he's going, following the path to my place…well more like temporary residence while in this world.

It's a nice, old, little wooden house at the edge of the park, nothing special, with two bedroom, one (huge, thanks to Gowland wanting to renovate the place.) bath, a decent sized kitchen and a living room. It even came with its own furniture! Old, extremely fluffy furniture, but hey, no complaints from me. And it's just big enough for me and, occasionally, Kida when she's not hold up in Julius's tower with her painting. Funny thing about this house, though, is that it actually borders on Blood's territory a little…like one of my bedrooms and the back yard is on Blood's and the rest is on Gowland's. I wasn't really complaining, considering it was the only place open at the time for me, but you know one Gowland and Blood start getting at it, it's almost impossible to stop.

Shortcut down the alley and out of the initial park area (but still on Gowland's territory), a couple of turns here and there, and there's my house, looking all cute and homely with its back against the forest like that. Sure, it's a little old, and I can't tell you how many times my screams has brought Boris, Ace, or whoever else is in the vicinity at the time to the door just to kill a damn spider, but it's a nice house and it's MY house and I LIKE IT.

I shift my bag to my hip so I can fish my key out of my pocket

"Where are you…hmmm-Aha! There you are!" I exclaim as I pull out a silver key with a round head on it, engraved with a music note, "Sneaky thing, hiding under my wallet. And…in you go!"

The lock gives way with a sound click

"I'm home!", I call out into the empty building, half expecting someone to say 'welcome back' like back in my old world…or those times when a bloody Boris sneaks in through an open window and I have to bandage him up. The house is empty, though, and it leaves me with a rather lonely feeling in my chest. I stuff it back in my heart and walk inside, kicking the door closed behind me. I walk through the living room and carefully into the kitchen to set my bag on the counter

"Ok, let's see what we have today." I mumble to myself as I reach into the bag and pull out its contents. Today I scored a small container of coffee cream pie (about 4 pieces), a two whole topping-less cheesecakes, about half a carrot cake (which is weird considering Elliot usually cleans us out of carrot stuff when he visits), about twelve homemade chocolate-peanut butter candy bars, some peanut brittle in a baggie, and finally, a handful of homemade candies of various flavorings. Wow, how did I carry all of this and not spill it or drop it?! Guess I'm stronger than I thought. I am so totally a BOSS!

I mentally meditate, trying to figure out where I'm going to put/take all this stuff.

'_Hmm…I can bring the Coffee Pie with me next time I go see Kida…Julius need to eat something every now and again. Ah, Ace might be there… just in case 'if' he is I might need to bring a peace offering of candy bars so that maybe he will leave me alone. The carrot cake can go to Elliot…or maybe Peter…does Peter even like carrot cake? Well, he is a rabbit, so…we shall see about that. I can save the cheesecakes, the candies, and peanut brittle for later.'_

I pause

_'__If I do end up taking the carrot cake to the mansion, and show up with food only for Elliot, Dee and Dum are going to probably pitch a bitch fit…ok, so note to self. Bring the candy if you are going to Blood's, Hikari.'_

I scratch the back of my head. I like the part where Mr. Bill gives me the left overs, but even I know that I can't eat all these by myself. And that's why I share them with my many friends…but sometimes it's hard to figure out who gets what. But for now, I put them in my fridge, so they don't go bad. As I bend over, I can't help but notice that I'm low on a couple of necessities, like bread and eggs…and meat. Gotta have my meat. I should probably go shopping soon.

_'__Good thing I just got paid overtime…maybe I can indulge a little. I remember Blood saying something about there being a new tea shop in town. Maybe I'll stop by and see what they have. Ah…but I really want to save and get those cute, gun shaped earrings I saw that one time when Blood and his boys first took me to the park.(*3) Grrr…I also probably should get new shoes! My tennis are getting hole-y…AH! So many choices!'_

As I mentally argue with myself, I yawn and pop my neck, momentarily leaving the kitchen to wonder into my bedroom. An unmade bed meets my eye as I open the door. A couple of dirty clothes and scrap paper are scattered here and there, but not enough to tempt me to go on a cleaning frenzy. My Mary Poppins approved shoulder bag is lying beside my bed, and on the back of a chair hung my semi-new black and neon green outlined jacket. I had somewhere lost my old, hand-me-down oversized black one during that first week (*4) Kida and I wondered Wonderland. After that, I sorta forget about it and was without a jacket for quite a while. That is, until I mentioned it to Boris during one of his unexpected visits. (I was actually complaining a little considered most of the clothes that were sold for women in this world were DRESSES, and I had to shop mostly in the men's section) He was sympathetic and nice enough to show me where he goes shopping. Which is AWESOME by the way. All cool and punk. And now I have this bitchin techno-looking fluffy as hell jacket. Kida approves too, and was a little jealous at first. Boris tried to snuggle up to her, and she almost threw him across the room. To calm her down, I promised I would take her there sometime, and Boris's response was that he would join us as well.

I absently walk over to the side of my bed and open one my drawers, and nestled on a pile of folded up socks is my little vial with the clover stopper, a little over one fourth of the way full. I frown at it a little. It's been about a month or so since Nightmare explained all this shit to us, and I'm nowhere near figuring out any of it. I'm supposed to be missing something in my heart, right?

I stretch my arms over my head and fall back on my bed,

"A SIGN WOULD BE NICE RIGHT ABOUT NOW!" I shout, yelling out my frustration. Of course, it's silent afterward, and I roll over in my bed, a little disgruntled at my life at the moment.

Of course, when my face is being pillowed my arm, I can't help but have a good sniff of good, clean, underarm stink.

"Shit is that me?" I exclaim and I sit up, sniffing myself. It's me alright, and I laugh a little, "Ok, before any life-changing decisions are made, I believe a shower is necessary."

I do that miraculous living alone walk-strip thing, letting the clothes fall where they may as I walk out of my room and across the hall toward my bathroom. I fight with my faucet a little to get the hot water running (only thing wrong with this house, but Gowland said he's send someone to fix it) before I jump in, letting the water do its thing and trying not to let my glasses get too wet. (Since I'm practically blind without my glasses, I make it a point to wear them all the time, except when sleeping.) I stand there for a moment, head tipped back as I just enjoying the simplicity of hot water as it melts a little of my worries away. After about fifteen minutes of that, I scrub myself down, wash and rinse my hair, and wrap a towel around me as get ready to walk back to my room to scrounge up some clothes. As I pass the mirror over the vanity, I pause, then back step to look. Same long, wavy, almost ragged looking brown hair that's now slicked down with water. Same light brown eyes (honey colored, Vivaldi says. I can't really see it). Same blue-rimmed glasses. Same lightly tanned skin, although now it's a little red thanks to the hot water.

I lower my towel a little

"Same scar." I sigh as I look at my reflection, showing the 'X' shaped scar over my heart. Thanks to the shower, it shows on me more, an almost ghostly mark compare to my heat blushed skin. One of the lines from my shoulder to the middle of my chest is a ragged line while the other is a clean, surgical cut. This is the reminder, the symbol of the hardships I had to endure as I grew up, and is the proof that survived and that I'm stronger because of it. And it's also the symbol of my sins…

"Well…can't really change the past, can I?" I laugh emptily, then shrug my shoulders as I leave my copy behind, "All I can do is go forward."

Back to my room I go, towel secure around my waist as I dig through my drawers for something decent to wear. I find a pair of khaki shorts and a navy tank-top (plus female requirements that I don't think I need to describe here) and throw them on. I take my towel and hang it around my shoulders as I walk back to the kitchen to grab an orange soda from the fridge (because orange soda is AWESOME), opening it with one hand (LIKE A TOTAL BOSS) before lazing toward my couch and plopping on it. My wet hair dampens the fabric, but I don't care

_Ok, so I've had my mental/self-analysis of the day, my food is in the freezer, and I've taken a bath. _

I put my drink on the table in front of me before laying down, my legs hanging off the arm

_Wonder what I should do now…take a nap maybe? Go see Kida? Go shopping? Adventuring?_

_Hmmm…_

* * *

**And this is the beginning my first side fic. I left it kind of short and open, so that I can maybe build some of my other side fics off of it. ANYTHING CAN HAPPEN FROM THIS POINT!**

**I wanted to start off by getting Hikari set up with her own little place and job, giving an idea on how she's sort of adjusted**

**1-Apple Cake is an actual family recipe. If you want to know it, PM me**

**2-Same thing with the cake. If you want to know the Fish Croquet recipe, PM me**

**3-refers to CH 13 of my first story, Where Blood and his crew take Hikari to the park for the first time and bump into Kida showing Gowland how to play the violin. LOL**

**4-Refers to first story. Hikari's main items are her handmade yellow-orange-red scarf (Brothers and grandma made it for her for a birthday present. it flows to each color), her wallet with the picture of her brothers, and her pocket knife (Her grandfathers)**


	2. Which way again?

**ME: HI everyone! MADNESSapples here with another chapter. This is the second chapter in my HikarixGray story. I know it's been a while, but I'm happy to say that a couple of new updates are coming soon…but only if I have the right amount of reviews. So if there is a particular side story you like, be sure to leave a word or two so I know you want to read more**

**Gray: Yes please. Leave a word or two for the author works exceptionally hard…(mumbles) unlike some people**

**Nightmare: I-I work hard!**

**Hikari: It's more like hardly working**

**ME: Play nice you guys. Anyway I only own the plot and my two OCs. HnKnA belongs to the wonderful QuinRose**

**And with that said**

**R&amp;R**

* * *

I decide, after much debating and about an hour or so of unintentional napping, to go visit my friend Kida at the Clocktower. It really has been a while since I've done that, and someone needs to make sure that the light of day actually comes into her's and Julius home once in a blue moon. It's also important to make sure that Julius is eating healthy. Yes, Kida does an excellent job of taking care of him, but she's used to cooking simple things like fried eggs on toast or pancakes or hamburger. What Julius needs is some meat and vegetables in his gut…and lucky for both of them that's exactly what I have frozen in the freezer. And so, with a yawn, I push myself up off the couch to stand, then reach for the soda I left on the table. Unfortunately, upon taking a drink, I quickly realize that it's lost most of it's fizz…which is weird. I must have been napping longer than I thought for that to happen. But whatever I suppose. I chug the rest of the orange flavored drink and crunch the can into a sort of disk in my fist, and with a flick of my wrist, hoop it into the garbage can. I grab the insulated picnic basket from the counter and set it on the table, opening it so that I don't have to worry about it in a minute

When I walk over to my freezer and open it, an icy wind escapes and flushes against my cheeks and collarbone, and I shiver a little. I quickly reach in and grab what it was I was looking for...two gallon bags filled with my special, grandma approved hambone soup. From the see through plastic bags I can see each filled to the brim with tomato sauces, vegetables, beef and ham giblets, and a butt load of other goodies. I also grab two ice packs so that they stay cold in the bag, and set them in the bottom of the basket before putting the bagged soups on top. Over to the fridge I go, and I open it to grab the container with the coffee cake that I was wanting to give to them. I set it beside the soup bags so that the coolness radiating off of them and the ice packs will keep it fresh. I also grab a hand full of the homemade candy bars and throw them in there, just in case I bump into Ace. One can never be too careful, especially with that guy wondering about. I then grab a small hand towel and set it on top of all of that. I plan to buy some other necessities at the store for the two of them later, like bread and maybe some coffee beans, so even if the soup melts a little (which is ok), it won't get the other things soggy or wet.

"Let's see", I mumble quietly to myself, "What else can I bring?"

I look around my kitchen one last time, double checking to see if there is anything else I can donate to my friend. When I find nothing of importance, I close the top on the basket and head to my bedroom to put on one of my new favorite pieces of clothes; a two-times-too-big navy blue hoodie with a cute kangaroo pocket with two huge buttons to fasten it right in the front of it. On me, it almost looks like a mini skirt, but my obvious khaki pants fixes that image quick. I grab my usual pocket filler gear AKA my wallet and my pocket knife, throw my scarf around my neck, and then go back to the kitchen. It's a simple trip, so I won't bring anything else.

Besides, it's not like it's going anywhere.

I grab the basket off the table and check again to make sure the contents are secure and ready for the trip. When I finish that, I walk toward my front door and slip my tennis on (no socks because I said so), and head out with a little skip in my step. I make sure to lock the door on the way out and, instead of turning to go to the park and take the road to town, I instead turn to the right, into the deep wood that surrounds the side and back of my house. It's a little secret shortcut that I found that leads into town, and I'm hoping that the stores are still open so that I can go for that quick shopping trip before heading to the Tower. Won't Kida be surprised when I bring her food to eat?

And so, with a whistling tune on my lips, I leave my house behind. The forest envelops me in its special kind of green shadowy warmth as the wild life lets out its usual noises. The long grass tickles my ankles, and the branches from the trees hang low and get right in the way, but that doesn't deter me from my direction and I tread forward and push stubborn branches out of the way. I squint into the distance, trying to find some semblance of a way to go and luck has it that I can see the twinkle of sunlight as it comes through the foliage above me. I decide that twinkles are a good sign and head that way.

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I'm not far away from my house, about maybe thirty to forty-five minutes worth of walking, when I think I hear something in the distance behind me. Which is weird because I'm in the middle of the forest and there shouldn't be anything back that way because I just came from that way. I turn around slowly to see if I can see anything. To me, it sounded like a subtle purr, like that of a big satisfied cat, but along with it is some subtle shaking of the ground and creaking from the trees around me. When one of trees falls over not far from me, I twist back and pick up my pace a bit to get away from whatever that is. A bit further on, I can't help but notice a couple of other strange things about my surroundings. Colorful mushrooms blossom here and there on the ground and these weird and colorful signs are nailed on the trees, each pointing in a particular random direction. I do NOT remember these particular things being there before, so I jot them down as weird shit that suddenly exists because this world is weird.

If you haven't noticed, I'm taking everything with a grain of salt these days. You have to. I mean, between the uncertainty and arbitrariness that happens here, what CAN you take seriously?

I don't know how far I walked or how many steps I've taken, but as I keep going forward at a rather fast pace, I hear another sound. It's soft at first, like mumbling, but as I go further and further forward, it gets ever louder. After a while I finally label it as the distinct twitter of people. But what are people doing in the middle of the forest? Curious, my feet pick up their pace, and in a sudden I escape the vastness of the forest, only to find…

…

…town?

_I'm in town already? That can't be right. I should still be a little ways off from hitting town. Also…I don't remember town being so… shroomy? _

All around me is the usual array of building and crowds of people that show off that his is a business area where people buy goods of every sorts, but everything looks…different, to say the least. The trees and mushrooms from earlier grow in a greater abundance here than they were in the forest, and its makes the town look more colorful in a way, and a lot more nature-y. The buildings look different, too. Sure, it's the usual brick, wood, and whatever else houses are made of, but everything looks more…rustic? Like it has that 'cabin-in-the-middle-of-the-woods' feel. But other than that, it looks like town…and it almost looks like a festival of some sorts. Above me are those flag-on-string things that you hang up to celebrate something, and on each little triangle of green cloth there was a cute little clover shaped emblem.

_Well that's different. I wonder what's up._

I walk over to the nearest stand, which so happens to be selling fruit, and tap the shoulder of brunette boy working over the counter.

He turns to me, "How may I help you today, ma'am?"

"Oh, I'm just wonder what's going on?" I look around again, trying to get used to the sight, "Is there a party going on or something?"

He lets out a chuckle, "Something tells me you're not from around here."

What I wanna say is _'no shit sherlock'_, because no I'm not actually from this world, but I instead respond in a more appropriate manner and point toward the forest, "I actually live off that way, but I come to town often enough. No one told me about any celebration."

"Oh really?" he says, interested, "Well, I'll be happy to inform you. Everyone is getting ready for the Assembly that's happening soon."

"Assembly?"

"Yes.", he then curls his finger to me for me to get closer and whispers in my ear, "In all honesty, the Assembly itself isn't very special. It's when all the Role Holders have to gather together and just…talk. Usually about everything and nothing at all. Nothing gets done and nothing gets decided. But to us Faceless, it's like a day off from work, and we usually just drink and have fun while we can."

I nod my head in understanding and back away, "So it's basically more of the bullshit that this world has to offer."

"That's a crude way of putting it, but yes. Um…By the way", he says, and looks me over, "Are you a new Role Holder? I haven't seen you around."

I laugh a bit, used to this. Though, I figured by now everyone in town would know who I am. He must be a new guy. Either way, I explain it to him, "No, I'm not a Role Holder. I'm what you apparently call a Foreigner in this world. But for the record, I do know some of the Role Holders. They're my friends!"

"R-Really? F-friends…with the Role Holders?!" he gasps and gaps like a fish out of water, like this is the strangest thing he's heard all day, "W-Which ones?"

"Uh…um…lemme think", I have to pause, and I count them up on my fingers. And yes, I use my fingers thank you, "Well, there's Kida to start off with, cuz she's by best friend. But she's like me, so I guess she doesn't count. Umm…Elliot and Blood and the twins…Gowland and Boris. Ace…counts I guess…maybe Peter. I try to stay away from Vivaldi…let's see…"

Another pause.

_I can't help but think I'm forgetting someone…who is it-Oh yeah!_

"And Nightmare! I think that's everyone."

He whistles at my list, and I loose count by the sharpness of it, "Wow. E-even Lord Nightmare. You must be really brave then to have all of them as…f-friends."

I tilt my head, confused by his choice in words, but I can't help but notice that the people around me are staring at me like I'm something else as they collect in a sort of crowd. It's a little weird, to say the least, and I'm getting kind of uncomfortable. I think I'll skedaddle before something actually happens.

"Um…I don't think bravery has anything to do with it but…uh…mister. Anyways, thanks for answering my questions. I think I'll head…that way now."

"Oh, it was no trouble at all, Ma'am…I mean Miss Hikari. I was happy to help"

With a nod, I leave the fruit stand guy behind and go on my marry way. I can still sort of feel the stares boring into my spine, but I weave myself into the thick crowd and loose them. Once I'm completely integrated into the sea of people, I let out a sigh of relief.

_Well, it's not like my plans have changed at least. They've just got a new flare to them, thanks to the town being decorated and this Assembly thing. It's still town and I'm still going to go to the Clocktower and bring Kida and Julius my soup and stuff. It's just a matter of getting it done now, and asking Julius what this Assembly is all about. _

As these thoughts are rolling around in my head, I'm headed in the direction of where I remember my favorite bread store being, my feet carrying my in a sort of auto-pilot as I weave and dodge bodies. My basket swings a bit, but I try not to nail anyone with it.

_It's still weird that this is the first time I'm hearing about it though. This is the first I've heard of it. And I'm sure if it was important enough to celebrate, Blood or Gowland would tell me something about it so I could at least prepare…_

With a sigh, I approach the building and push the door of the store open, only to have a smell that is NOT bread hit my senses and change my thought process all together.

…_frying meat? _

I take a look around and notice that there are tables scattered around the inside, where people happily ate things like hamburger steak and baked fish, things that I know are NOT sold in a bread store.

_…__Isn't this where the bread shop is supposed to be?_

Confused, I walk out the door and look at the sign and where I am. Sure enough, this IS where the store is supposed to be, but…

_Well, it says it's a restaurant now. Did they move or change management or something?_

I turn toward the closest person to walk past me, a woman in a rather tight business suit who was leaving the restaurant, "Ma'am, what happened to the bread store?"

She turns to me gives me a confused look (or as much of a confused look as she can), "What do you mean? This place has always been a restaurant."

_…__huh?_

"But if you're looking for the bread store, its right across the lane, over there", she points in the direction of a particular store where I remember they sold good and crisp vegetables.

_…__Wait what? _

"Oh…ok. Thank you." my mouth says absently without my knowing as I let this sink in slowly. She nods with a smile and strides away from me, and with confusion emanating from every fiber of my being, I too start walking, in the direction of the what-is-now the bread store.

When I arrive, I sort of just stand there for a moment, as if to make sure that this is the real deal. The sign says Bread Store on it, and I can defiantly smell the yeast and cooking flour in the air…but this isn't right!

_Ok, world. You've fucked with me on enough occasions to make me the paranoid sarcastic butthole that you see before you, but this is becoming ridiculous. This is NOT supposed to be the bread store. This is SUPPOSED to be the veggie store!_

I cautiously reach to pull the door open.

_But…whatever I guess? I mean…I'm used to weird stuff now…right? Maybe it's because of this Assembly thing that everything is all moved. And maybe this is all that's changed…Yeah, you know what? Fuck it! I'm going to go shopping!_

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I was wrong…so incredibly wrong. FUCK

Why is everything in a place where it's not supposed to be?! At first I thought it was just that restaurant being where bread store is supposed to be and the bread store being where the veggie store is supposed to be, but that's not even a teaspoon of the what-the-fuckness that is happening here! When I try to find a convenient store, it's changed into a clothing store, and probably vise-versa. There are roads that weren't there before and the roads that were there are now gone. My favorite and frequently visited stores have up and walked away, and people are looking at me like they were never there to begin with, and here comes these new stores out of fucking nowhere like they grow out of the dirt. And when I go in there I see NO ONE that I recognize and NO ONE has ANY idea who I am! I come to town practically everyday people! What the hell is going on?! Why is the town now upside down? My feet ache from wondering around town in aimless circles, and I am ready to openly weep at my predicament because there's still one more thing I have to do…but…

_I can't even find the damned coffee shop that's SUPPOSED to be over there on the corner! But I JUST checked and that's now a tea shop! _

_WAHH! WHERE AM I?!_

**Nightmare's POV**

I can't help but openly laugh at the predicament of one of our newest (or relatively so) Foreigners as her thoughts almost echo in the air around me, loud with their pure emotion. But I know more than anyone that it is only me that hears these words. It's simply that funny! She can't even think…or even imagine that maybe she is no longer in the town of which she knew. The possibility that she could be in another town…in MY territory's town…doesn't even enter her head. It's so funny!

_Hahaha! Where are you indeed, Hikari? _

The sound of a cup loudly hitting my desk makes me jump slightly, and I turn my head hesitantly to meet the slightly frustrated golden eyes of my subordinate.

"Sir", he says with a sigh, "I would appreciate it if you would stop slacking and get back to work. The more you don't get done the more I have to do."

"I am working! Can't you see me working?" I exclaim as I start back stamping paper after paper. Curse it all, I hate paperwork. And curse him too! Why me?!

"Are you even reading the things you're stamping?!"

"I'm skimming them! It's the same thing!"

"It is not!"

"It is too!"

We glare at each other, each refusing to back down. After a minute or two another exasperated noise leaves his mouth as he pinches the bridge of his nose, "Arguing will get us nowhere…well, at least you are doing it. I suppose that can be said as much."

I let out my own annoyed humph in his direction. How dare he be frustrated and annoyed when it's me that has to do all this work! And be forced to take icky medicine and eat his nasty food…and do other things too! I'd like to see him do the things I deal with every day!

"And what exactly were you grinning about?" he asks as he walks over to open a window for a smoke. He leans against the side of it and takes a long drag inhale as he lights it, "If you haven't notice, the land has Moved, which means you'll be busier than ever with the upcoming Assembly."

"I know that", I mumble unhappily, but as another of Hikari's loud and flustered thoughts rushes into my head, I can't help but be a little bit happier of the change. At least I know things are about to get a little more interesting now

_But I can't leave her like this…at this rate she'll never get anywhere. Guess I have no choice then_

I pause in my work, and this immediately catches his attention. But before he has the chance to say or do anything, I quickly get the upper hand.

"Gray, I need you to go into town for me.", I say with a serious tone.

He raises his eyebrow at my sudden change in subject, "This is sudden. What for?"

"There's a person there who needs your help."

There's a pause in our conversation, and without being told I go back to work stamping paper after paper after paper. Even though I can't read his mind thanks to his mind block, it doesn't take much to tell that he's thinking about what I said very thoroughly and carefully, no doubt thinking that this is some sort of trick of mine. I will admit that I have tried this once or twice.

After another moment, he finally speaks, "I'm supposing this is another made-up excuse so that you can neglect your work?"

_See what I mean?_

"I'm being very serious here, Gray", I say, and as another of Hikari's confused thoughts run into my head, I decide to take another approach, "And you might want to hurry. Seems she's running herself in circles."

"She?"

"The Foreigner."

At the word 'Foreigner', his eyes widen, and he has a bit of a confused look on his face. Ah…that's right. I never told him about those two coming to our world now did I? And so he should be a bit confused, especially since Alice's recent departure. I suppose now is as good as ever to explain.

"This is another Foreigner altogether, one of the two new ones that the White Rabbit asked me to bring not so long ago."

His face changes to deep thought as he takes his last long drag from his cigarette and lets it slowly escape. He crushes out the last of it and, with a sigh, he pushes himself off the wall, "Well…I needed to go buy some more coffee anyway."

"Yes! And do that too!" I say with an over exaggerated clap of my hands, (because the only good thing that Gray can make just happens to be coffee…and hot chocolate.) I can practically hear his eyes rolling as he walks to the door, but before he has the chance to reach for the door, I decide to change back into my more serious tone and give him a parting warning,

"Be cautious and wary, Gray. I've been…hearing things lately. A lot of unwholesome things like to turn up whenever the land Moves, so keep a look out and…take care of any problems you find." I grin, "Of course, this is nothing new…and nothing you can't handle, right?"

He chuckles lightly, as if amused by my choice of wording.

"Of course."

_Uh-huh…and while you do that maybe I'll take a break myself-_

"But I still expect you to be _at least_ finished with that stack of paperwork by time I return"

_Drat_

"And I mean it, too. No slacking off. I'll have someone watch you while I'm gone."

"I'm not a child, Gray!"

"Of course, sir…but just in case."

Before I have a chance to retort, he's escaped out the door. Damn that Gray! He's always like that!

I slump in my desk and solemnly go back to work, half listening to the never ending voices around me as they chatter and think about everything and nothing at all.

All that's left for me to do is sit and wait

* * *

**To Fl0werDoll :Well, I'm happy you are hungry then! Keep Reading!**

**To Allora22701 :i'm working on both a HikarixAce and a KidaxJulius as we speak, but collage has started so i can't say when they will be uploaded. But you've been an advid reader, and I'm happy for your patience. Hope you enjoy this!**


	3. Kitten Craziness

**ME: HI everyone! MADNESSapples here with another chapter. This is the third chapter in my HikarixGray story. I'm really on a role with this one. Any ideas are welcome**

**HnKnA belongs to the wonderful QuinRose**

**And with that said**

**R&amp;R**

* * *

Chapter 3: Kitten Crazy

After another exhausting walk around this mix matched town and a lot of mental screaming, I decide that I need some serious chill time to collect my thoughts and just stop moving altogether, so me and my basket slump on a nearby bench that sits in front of what looks like a huge, wide oak tree that is growing in the middle of the road and through the pavement...because that's a thing. I close my tired eyes and lean my head back until I bump the tree, and a sound that sounds like a mix of an exhausted sigh and a frustrated moan leaves my mouth.

_Why are you doing this to me world? I just need to find the coffee shop for crying out loud. Is that too much to ask?_

I groan and slump even further in my seat. I don't know how long I sat there on that bench, contemplating the what-the-fuckness of what's happening in town, but when I open my eyes again, the sky has changed from Noon to Evening, as if I had taken a good, long nap while sitting there on the bench. I am staring up and watching as the red sky glitters through the spaces between the leaves above me, and it's almost hypnotizing how simply beautiful that it. I mean, to some people, that might not look be anything special, but for me, who's spent years learning how to _look_ and _see_ things, and then try and replicate it on paper or canvas, one can't help how modestly pretty it is.

_…__I guess this can be qualified as a good thing that's happening. At least it's not raining buckets or something horrible like that…ah…it's kinda nice like this. Yeah…maybe in a little while I'll get up and look for that coffee shop again._

_Yeah… _

_…_

_…_

_..._

"WAAAAHHHHHH!"

The sound of someone's kid screaming at the top of his lungs extremely close to me makes jolt my head up, and I look out to see a pair of little Faceless children, a little blonde boy and a pre-teen blonde girl, not very far away from me as the older one tries to quiet the younger. She settles for picking him up in her arms and together they come in my direction.

"Oh…please. Please don't cry!" says the obviously older sister of the two as she cradles her brother, "…h-hey let's sit down over here, ok?"

"B-Buh…kee-kee…muh kee-kee…"

"Ohhh…"

She sits to my left, as if she hasn't even noticed I'm here yet, and rocks her little brother and pats at his back in hopes of calming him down. Even I know that that's not going to work, especially if it's something he wants that's the matter, but I do remember trying that growing up. And as he shirt gets starts to get soaked with little boy tears and gawd know what else, I decide to help. Because that's just what I do.

And as a sister myself, I can't help but offer another some advice.

"That's not gunna work, y'know."

She jumps and turns her head in my direction, and her brother lets out another wail, which has her attention almost immediately.

"O-Oh…I-I'm s-so sorry M-miss R-r-role H-Holder. I-I'll leave if we're bothering y-you", she says timidly, almost frightened.

"Oh, I'm not a Role Holder. I'm what you call a Foreigner, I think.", I say gently as I reach into my basket. I grab one of my candy bars and hold them out to her, "Here. Try this."

"H-huh?"

I laugh, and with my other hand I gingerly grasp hers and place the sweet in her palm, "It's obvious he's upset about something. Try giving him this to calm him down. I promise he'll love it."

"Oh…OH! Ok!" she gasps, as if finally realizing what I'm telling her…either that or she simply can't think of anything better and is hoping that his will work. She then coos at her little brother, trying again to calm him as she open the wrapper for him, "Look it here! Looky what big sis has for you~ Yummy sweets for your tum-tum~"

He sniffs and turns his head up toward her, his face ruined with tears, and with a curious hand he grabs the candy with both of his chubby little hands and nibbles at the sweetness. That one happens to be extremely soft chocolate that practically melts in your mouth, and as he learns that yes he does enjoy this, it isn't long until he has it smeared on his mouth and on his fingers like the cute little two or three year old he is (I'm guessing). And his sister, being the responsible one, gets a tissue or two out of her pocket and does that miraculous double tasking thing that comes with dealing with younger siblings/children and rubs the rest off of his mouth and gets him to blow his little red nose. He completely refuses to have his hands wiped though, as he sucks on them to get the chocolate off.

"Now ain't that better, little man?" I reach my hands out the calmly ruffle both of their blonde heads, and he nods as he licks at his messy fingers to get the rest, and lets out a loud and rather slobbery suck

"Oh thank goodness. I didn't think he would ever stop crying." The blonde girl sighs, relieved that he's calmed down, "But…how did you know what to do?"

"You could say I have some experience in this field." I let out another giggle, because you really have no idea how funny that actually is, especially giving ME in general. I clear my throat and continue "You have to keep a clear head when dealing with children. It's easy to rile them up, especially at his age, and in those types situations it's best to give him something to distract him with, whether it's a toy or a sweet, until he can calm down enough to talk. Then you can find out what's wrong and hopefully fix it."

"Wow Miss Forigner, you're amazing!"

I blush a bit. Shit, it really wasn't anything that amazing. I just don't like hearing kids crying. And I'm a helpful sort of person. Nothing amazing…

I smile goofily anyway.

When he finishes off all of his fingers, the boy sniffles a bit and turns his face (that isn't really there) up to me "T'ank you, lady."

I nod and smile gently at him, "It's ok, little man. Nothing to it. Now, how's about telling little ol' me what's got you so pouty, and I'll see if I can fix it for you."

He lets out a little sad hick-up, tears picking back up, and rubs his still snotty nose on the sleeve of his shirt "My kitty…it's my kitty cat. It's got in a twee and I can'ts get it down."

The girl lets out a sound, like she know which cat he's talking about, "You mean Blacky?"

"Uh-huh. We wuz pwaying and he randid off so I wens lookin for him, and I founded him in a twee." He lets out another sniffle, "Buh he not comin down when I callz him…he awwayz comz when I callz him..."

I tap my finger against my chin. Oh, so that's what he's upset about. Well, I suppose from his point of view, having his best friend run off and then not being able to get him back would make any toddler upset. Well, if it's just a tree that needs to be climbed to get it, maybe I could go and try. I mean, back in my world I lived in between 'the middle of the boonies' and 'nowhere-ville', and the most exciting thing that can happen is going swimming in the creek and climbing a tree. Not even going to mention that the reason I had to climb the tree was to get all the shit out of said trees that my brothers got up there in the first place…but yeah, this is nothing new. Except this time it's a living thing and not...like a Frisbee or a kite.

When I voice this out to the two of them, the boy claps his hands excitedly and scoots out of his sister's lap to the ground. He then grasps one of my hand in both of his tiny ones and gives me a tug.

"Iz dis way! Iz dis way!"

"Hai Hai. I'm coming" I laugh, involuntarily talking in the little bit of Japanese I know from watching too much English Sub anime. (I actually know quite a lot actually from just that.) I grasp my basket and walk beside the unnamed sister as I let myself be led by the little tot in front of me, to wherever this road may lead.

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"Dat one! Iz dat one!"

I stare in awe at what I see before me, my mind not wanting to believe it but my eyes saying otherwise. No seriously, it's one of those thing that you won't believe until you see it with your own two eye. Those types of things. What was in front of me was the hugest, tallest, wildest looking tree probably in history/this world, and it just so happened to be another one of those trees that grew in the middle of fucking everything. And from the look of it, it seems like it has been here for years, and wasn't going to be trimmed anytime soon. Its branches sprouted everywhere, and some hung so far to the ground that people were actually using them as places to sit. Like they were benches or something! I looked around and sure enough, there were older kids playing on it like it was some sort of jungle gym. There were even some mushrooms growing around it, freakishly huge ones might I add, which no one seemed to care about in the least. In fact, those same kids were using them as pillows, and were taking turns jumping from the tree to land on them. I think I even see houses in that tree! It was so weird and so cool that my mind...it just can't comprehend the awesome. Because this is the most awesome tree I have ever seen in my life. It's like...natures homemade playground for various ages. It's an Awesome tree because I have no idea what type of tree this is. From my world I could maybe call it a Magnolia or an Oak, maybe a Cedar, but it's like a mix of the three plus more.

"You are a beauty…yes you are." I murmur as I pat at the base of the tree, because that's really all I can do or say at the moment. I shake my head to clear my thoughts and look up in the tree to see if I can see the cat...wait

"What color was it again?", I ask as I look down at the boy

"Bwacky is Bwack"

_Fuck, why didn't I think of that?_

The boy grabs my hand and pulls me again, this time underneath the tree and closer to they playing children where I can look up into it. He then points toward, from what I can tell, a hole in the side of a tree and yells, "I sawz him up dere!"

I squint to make sure it's still there and, sure enough, you can see the black feline outline as he looks into the hole for some reason. Problem is that 'Up dere' just so happened to be about midway up this monstrosity of a tree, and from where he is, he is higher than any of the two to three story buildings that are around it. But good thing for me that this isn't my first rodeo.

"Alright. I think I can manage that." I announce as I walk a little ways around the tree to find a foot place to make a starting point at. It doesn't take me long to find it, because the foot place just so happens to be around where those playing kids happen to be.

I turn to the two children and bend down to their height

"Ok, now I want you two do me a little bitty favor", I say as calm as I can, and hold out my basket, "I need you two to stay right here and watch this basket for me, ok? It's very special, and I don't want anything bad to happen to it."

The blonde girl nods and takes it. It's heavier than she thought though, so it makes a thump when it hits the ground.

"W-What's in this?"

"Soup. But that's beside the point. Pay attention now", I hold one hand in front of my lips to signal silence while I explain the rest, "Don't let anyone or anything get in it, okay? And while you do this important job, I'm going to get your kitty out of the tree, ok? And if you do a really really good job for me, I'll give you a prize when I come down"

"What kinna prize?" asks the little boy cheerfully, and I giggle

"The best kind of prize…is a surprise, silly!" and with that I give him the tickle smack down! He laughs brightly at the sudden tickling, and wriggles out of my grasp to hide playfully behind his sister, who giggles as well.

"OK, so stay right here", I repeat, and with a wave I bid them farewell, for the time being, and go look for a good starting point. But that seems to be the simple part, as I quickly find foot holes in the tree, probably created by the older children.

And so, I start to climb. Up and up I go a good foot or so, using the foot holes first until they end about ten feet up at what a tree house for the children. It wraps around the base of the tree, in an almost C shape, using the trunk for stability and balance. I climb up on the porch of the house, and the children there look over at me, curious.

"Uh...sup?", I start, "Don't mind me. Just climbing this tree."

"Are you trying to beat the record?" one of them asks

I tilt my head, "Record?"

"Yeah. It's a game we play.", a boy, about twelve-looking, stands up and walks over to the base and points to a cut in the tree with a name over it, "See these? They mark how high up a person has gone. There are a bunch of them up and down this tree."

"Yeah. To mark how high that person has gone before chickening out", another boy laughs, "Are you gunna do it, lady?"

"Dude, I just wanna get this cat for this kid." I explain, then laugh, "But hey, I think I'll leave my mark too, if I beat it on the way."

"Good luck!", a girl exclaims, then points to a large branch, "You can use that over there to get to the roof and continue upwards. Just follow the marks in the tree."

"Alright, thanks."

And with that short interval, I hop to the branch, to the roof, and start climbing again

"Woah", I whistle as I sit on a sturdy branch for a break and look down at the ant like people, "Damn I am high up. Hope I can get down"

So yeah...I've been climbing for a while now. Like, I've passed the last mark in the tree A WHILE AGO, and left my little mark on the tree already (I didn't wanna hype up the kids, so I just put it about three inches above the last one. I'm going to put another one where I actually stop at). **And I'm still going. **But lucky for me, that cat is, like, two branches up, still looking in that tree hollow. So, I'm almost there. With a huff, I push myself up, and start climbing again. I'm in the rhythm though, so I easily get up to the branch Blacky is on and sit behind him

"Here kitty kitty~" I murmur, trying to draw the cat toward me, "Blacky-Boo. Come here honey~"

The little kitten turns to me and gives me that indifferent look. You know, the one that's a mixture of _'I have no fuck giving cell in my body right now'_ and _'Ain't nobody got time for you' _That look. Yeah, it gives me THAT LOOK before turning back to the hollow, butt in air, ready to pounce.

"You've been staring at that hole for over twenty minutes. What in the hell are you looking at?", I lean over the cat to look into the hollow

...

I take my glasses off, whip them off, and put them back on just to make sure I'm not imagining things, and even then I stare into the hollow, eyes wide.

...

…it's a fish

…

_What in the actual fuck?! What's a fish doing in a tree?!_

And I am SO not making things up. In the hollow of the tree, which I'm about two stories off the ground, is a silvery, flip flopping fish. In fact, it looks like there's water in the hollow as well, as it disappears and reappears into the tree. I shit you not. Curious, I pick up the kitten by the scruff of its neck and hold the tiny thing in my arms as I scoot over to get a closer look at the hole. It LOOKS like a normal tree hollow. I reach in and knock on the floor of the hole with my knuckles. It FEELS like one too. But as soon as I pull my hand away, it sloshes out of the tree bark, as if from nowhere. While I am gaping at the strangeness of the situation, said fish suddenly flips up and swims toward me IN MIDAIR, and I am face slapped with a fish tail of massive proportions. It then disappears again.

I rub at my slightly cheek, "Fucking cheeky fish. You're lucky I don't have a fishing rod or you would be supper"

The kitten in my arms lets out a mewl, as if agreeing with me somewhat, and I look down at it, suddenly remembering my mission.

_Fuck that fish, I promised a little boy that I would get his kitten to him. Now...how am I going to get down with it?_

Absently, I scratch it's chin and pet at it, as I contemplate what I'm going to do to get both of us down safely. It purrs in contentment and nuzzles my palm.

"Aww. You are so CUTE~" I giggle as I hold it up and kiss its head. Then a thought comes to me, "I know! I'll put you in my pocket!"

I reach down and unbutton the kangaroo pocket on my hoodie and hold it open as I plop the little thing in there. It doesn't really care for it much, and tries to climb out once or twice before I calm it down.

"Its ok~ It's ok. It's just for a little while"

When it's at least calm enough, I button only one of the two, to keep air in there, and it instantly pops its head out and lets out an annoyed mewl.

"I know it's not comfy, but you'll be ok for a little bit."

I scratch at its chin again, and it purrs, as if saying that it will do as I say for the time being. It then sticks its head back in my pocket.

_Ok, let's start heading down again_

**GRAY'S POV**

"Thank you." I call out as I leave the Coffee Shop, bag of freshly ground beans in my hand. I even got a small treat from the kind woman in there, because I am a regular visitor. It isn't much, just a simple fruit pastry. From there, I take a left and head further into the town, my eyes glancing around, keeping an eye out for anything suspicious. The Move tends to uproot some...unseemly things. I need to be cautious, just as Nightmare said. But it's not only ruffians that I am on the lookout for.

I am also curious about this new Foreigners, especially the one I have gone out to search for. To have one in a game is rare, but to have two simultaneously is unheard of. What will she be like? Will she be like Alice? Or will she be different? And if so, how different will she be? So many questions swirl in my mind, but one sticks out

What does she even look like? I don't even know her name, or where to start.

As I look around, I see Faceless after Faceless, but no sign of a Foreigner.

"This is going to be troublesome", I sigh as I enter the center of the settlement, where a huge tree or massive proportions settles in its middle, children playing in and around it. I walk to a nearby, low hanging branch, and sit down to think of how I'm going to go about looking for this woman whose face I don't even know.

"N-n-no! You can't have it!"

My eyes widen and dart to the loud cry, that of a young girl with blonde hair. Behind her is a small blonde male child, that can only be her sibling, as he feverishly protects a weaved basket. Hanging around them are two men, looking to be the lowest of the low. But in reality they are probably only petty thieves.

"Come on~" One says, as he pulls out a knife and points it at her, "Hand it over, and we'll be nice and let you live~"

"B-But", the girl looks troubled, and backs up to protect the boy and basket, "Y-You can't! I-It's not ours!"

_Should I intervene?_ I ask myself as I watch_, I was told to take care of any problems. And this seems problematic enough to warrant action._

"Iz not for you, big meaniez!" The boy shouts loudly, not knowing any better at his age, "We pwomize! We pwomized Miz Fowenr!"

Even through the slur of a two-year-old, I know that that warrants action. My body jumps to action, my knives leaving their slots on my sleeves and going into my palms. Faster than one could blink, I get behind them both, knifes at their necks

"Drop your weapons. All of them. Now.", I say, in the lowest, most dangerous voice I can manage. I can hear them both gulp, and I can't help but smile sadistically, old habits resurfacing, "Or would you like a taste of my blade today?"

"No! W-well drop them!"

"Y-yeah!"

The sounds metal hitting rock reaches my ears

"Girl." I look over at the blonde, who visibly cringes, "Grab their weapons"

She quickly scampers to do as she is told, and only when she is back hovering over her sibling, two pairs of knives and guns in hand, do I remove my knives from their neck.

"Now leave."

They skitter off, like the roaches they are, and I put my knives back in place as I watch them until they are out of sight. I turn toward the young girl, who shivers in fright, still protecting the boy.

"It's alright.", I explain, and crouch to their level, "You both are safe now. And I'm not here to harm you."

"H-huh?", stutters the girl, still cautious, "Y-you're not?"

"No. But I would like to ask you some questions about that basket you two are protecting"

"You no can haz it eter!", the little boy shouts suddenly, popping out from behind the blonde, "Iz Miz Fowenrz!"

I smile, "So I heard. Actually, that's what I want to ask you about."

The girl perks up, "Oh?"

"Yes. You see, I'm looking for-"

At that moment, I feel a plop of water hit the top of my head. I look up into the Evening sky, which has turned a gruesome grey color

**HIKARI'S POV**

I moan as I settle on a branch, resting for what seems like the up-teenth time. Fuck, why is it harder going down the tree than going up the tree? I reach into the pocket to let the kitten breath, and pet its head as I look down at the people below.

"Well at least they look like people now, and not ants. And I'm almost there. Look, Blacky", The kitten pops it's head out and mewls at having its name called, "We can see the roof of the tree houses."

Sure they are still a way's down, but I can see them. Maybe thirty more feet? Twenty? It's not that far, but I'm going to say twenty. It's a guestimate. I can't measure height by just looking. And so, with sigh, I push the kitten back into my pocket, stand, and start down again. I start by wrapping my arms around the branch and swing down, hanging on with my arms much like a monkey. I try to stretch my right foot to reach a nearby branch, but it's just a little bit too far away.

It's at that moment, hanging there, that I take a huge breath

_...Huh?_

I pause, and sniff at the air

"That's funny. It smells like it's going to rain. "

And as soon as the word _rain_ leaves my mouth, the bucket drops. And in little more than a couple of seconds, I am soaked. I don't even think the tree is bothering to block any of it. It was like COME AT ME! And the funny thing is, it stops just as quickly as it starts, leaving me looking like a shaggy, wet mutt, my hair sticking to my neck and forehead awkwardly, and my clothes feeling heavier than usual thanks to waterlog.

"Well this is just fucking great", I grumble. While I like the rain, right now it so not the time. I mean, really universe? Like climbing down this tall ass tree isn't dangerous enough. Now it's a wet, tall as tree-

It's at that moment that I hear a sound crack

I look up to see the branch trying to break off, thanks to my extra water weight. Thinking fast, and realizing that I'm about to fall to my doom if I don't do something, I look down to the near-yet-far branch.

_No choice. Gotta swing and pray!_

With my legs, I kick out once, back, twice, back, three times, trying to get a relatively good swing going. If course, the branch threatens to break any second. With a fourth kick, I let go.

"YAAAAAHHHHHH!"

I reach out to grab for the branch, but my upper chest and collarbone collide with the branch instead. I lose my breath for a second as I instinctively wrap my arm around it. My legs dangle, unsure where to go next.

_Fuck…hold on cat, something tells me this is going to get bumpy_

* * *

**_Oh noes! What will happen? WILL SHE LIVE? DIE? BE SAVED? _**

**_Why don't you tell me? _**


End file.
